Cookware and cook-packs for narrowband irradiation cooking and systems and methods thereof

ABSTRACT

A methodology and product or system configurations are provided which allow food to be directly irradiated for cooking applications which involve the impingement of direct radiant energy on food or comestible items. Cooking vessels or cook-packs are used that are optically transmissive in visible or infrared narrow wavelength bands emitted in suitable narrowband cooking or heating systems.

This application is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 13/159,380, filedJun. 13, 2011, which application is incorporated herein by reference inits entirety and is based on and claims the benefit of and priority toU.S. Provisional Application No. 61/353,782, filed Jun. 11, 2010, whichapplication is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

The field of cooking, baking, re-thermalizing and other heat-relatedfood preparation has had very few substantial or revolutionary changesin the last several decades. Therefore and correspondingly, the cookingware vessels that are used for heat-related food preparation havechanged very little. Vessels of cooking which include, but are notlimited to, pots, pans, skillets, sauce pans, woks, casserole dishes,kettles, or griddles tend to be made of metals or ceramics—both of whichare opaque to most wavelengths of irradiation. The packages orcook-packs in which pre-packaged foods are sold are often made frommaterials which also are optically opaque or nearly so. Therefore, anyirradiation that would be directed at the comestibles would be blockedfrom direct impact by the cooking vessel or packaging. With thisarrangement, since the radiant energy hits the cooking vessel and doesnot directly hit the food item, direct heating by the irradiation is notpossible, at least from those angles which block direct photonic impactinto the food item. As the irradiation energy hits the cooking vessel orpackage it is either reflected or absorbed by it. The result is it heatsup the pan, cooking vessel, or package instead of directly heating thefood. In order to heat the food, a secondary thermal transfer must takeplace between the cooking vessel or package and the comestible target.This is an inefficient heat transfer process in most cases, and sincemuch of the produced heat never touches the comestible, there is a largepercentage of wasted energy.

Secondarily, when the heat does finally reach the food item it must beconducted from the outer layer to the inner layers of the food product.This inherently causes the outer surface of the comestible to reach amuch higher temperature than the innermost areas of the product. It alsoslows down the cooking process since there is a maximum speed at whichheat can be conductively and/or convectively transferred from the outersurface to the inner region of the food product without burning, drying,or overheating it.

Microwave cooking, which does not use traditional broadband heat, butrather bombards the food with radio frequency energy, cooks entirelydifferently. Most non-metallic materials are transmissive to radiofrequency electro-magnetic energy. It heats by exciting or spinning freepolar molecules which then create heat inside the food. It is nottransmitting radiant photons or hot air to the food item. By contrast,any kind of direct radiant cooking process has associated with it thechallenge of how to suspend or hold the food item in the direct path ofthe irradiation source to facilitate the cooking process.

SUMMARY

In one aspect of the presently described embodiments, the vesselcomprises a vessel location feature to locate the vessel in a positionin the oven cavity relative to the arrays to facilitate irradiation ofthe comestible by the arrays, wherein the vessel is comprised of amaterial that is optically transmissive at the visible or infrarednarrow wavelength bands of irradiation emitted by the irradiationarrays.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the vessel iscomprised of plastic material.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the plasticmaterial is at least one of polyethylene terephthalate (PET),polypropylene (PP), high density polyethylene (HDPE), low densitypolyethylene (LDPE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polystyrene (PS),post-consumer resin (PCR) or Nylon.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the vesselincludes selected sections that are optically transmissive to allowdirect irradiation cooking of the comestible.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the vessel iscomprised of at least portions of glass material having a coefficient ofthermal expansion of less than 6.0×10⁻⁶.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, selected areasof the glass material are very thin.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the vessel hasa thinnest cross-section to allow for adequate structural strength for ageometry of the vessel to function.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the materialincludes stress relievers.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the materialis tempered glass or glass designed for toughness.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the materialis borosilicate glass.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the materialincludes colorants such that the colorants are chosen to be opticallytransparent at the chosen wavelengths.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the materialincludes additives to raise a coefficient of absorption.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the vesselfurther comprises an anti-reflective coating.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the vesselfurther comprises codes specifying at least one of cooking parameters oroven configuration parameters corresponding to physical parameters ofthe vessel.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the codes areone-dimensional or two-dimensional bar codes.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the codes areradio frequency identification (RFID) tags.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the vessellocation feature comprises a shoulder positioned on the outside of thevessel, the shoulder being configured to mate with a portion of the ovencavity to hold and locate the vessel within the oven cavity.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the vesselfurther comprises a comestible guide feature to orient the comestiblerelative to the arrays.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the comestibleguide feature comprises graphical or geometric indicators.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the graphicalor geometric indicators are disposed on or formed in a surface of thevessel.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the vesselfurther comprises a cover, the cover being optically transmissive atleast one of the visible or infrared narrow wavelength bands ofirradiation emitted by the irradiation arrays.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the vessel isconfigured to facilitate irradiation of the comestible from top andbottom directions.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the vessel iscomprised of mesh material.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the cook-packcomprises a plastic base portion into which the comestible item isplaced, the plastic base portion being optically transmissive at thevisible or infrared narrow wavelength bands of irradiation emitted bythe irradiation arrays to facilitate heating the comestible by theirradiation emitted by the arrays, and a cover for the base portion.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the cover iscomprised of a material that is optically transmissive at least one ofthe visible or infrared narrow wavelength bands of irradiation emittedby the irradiation arrays.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the cover isone of a lid and a film.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the cook-packis comprised of at least one of polyethylene terephthalate (PET),polypropylene (PP), high density polyethylene (HDPE), low densitypolyethylene (LDPE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polystyrene (PS),post-consumer resin (PCR) or Nylon.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, at least oneof the plastic base portion and the cover includes at least onecolorant, the at least one colorant being optically transmissive in atleast one of the narrow wavelength bands of irradiation.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, at least oneof the plastic base portion and the cover includes additives to raise acoefficient of absorption.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the cook-packfurther comprises an anti-reflective coating.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the cook-packfurther comprises codes specifying at least one of cooking parameters oroven configuration parameters specific to the comestible in thecook-pack.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the codes areone-dimensional or two-dimensional bar codes.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the codes areradio frequency identification (RFID) tags.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the cook-packfurther comprises a pressure or steam relief valve.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the cook-packfurther comprises geometric shapes of different material for browning orbranding purposes.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the cook-packfurther comprises a vessel location feature to locate the vessel in apredetermined position in the oven cavity relative to the arrays.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the vessellocation feature comprises a shoulder positioned on the outside of thevessel, the shoulder being configured to mate with a portion of the ovencavity to hold and locate the vessel within the oven cavity.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the cook-packis configured to facilitate irradiation of the comestible from top andbottom directions.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the baseportion is one of a disc and a container with vertical walls.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the baseportion includes at least one of ribs and apertures.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the at leastone colorant causes the vessel to be at least partially opaque to ahuman viewer while maintaining high transmissivity in at least one ofthe narrow wavelength bands of visible or infrared radiation.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the at leastone colorant comprises inks or colorants used as labeling materialreadable by a human viewer while maintaining high transmissivity in atleast one of the narrow wavelength bands of visible or infraredradiation.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the methodcomprises positioning the comestible in a vessel, the vessel beingcomprised of a material that is optically transmissive in at least oneof the visible or infrared narrow wavelength bands of irradiationemitted by the irradiation arrays, positioning the vessel in the ovencavity using a vessel location feature to locate the vessel in apredetermined position in the oven cavity relative to the arrays, and,heating the comestible in the vessel with irradiation emitted by theirradiation arrays.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, positioningthe comestible in the vessel comprises using a comestible guide featureto orient the comestible.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the comestibleguide feature comprises graphical indicators or geometric features on abottom of the vessel.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the vessellocation feature comprises a shoulder positioned on the outside of thevessel, the shoulder being configured to mate with a portion of the ovencavity to hold and locate the vessel within the oven cavity.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, positioningthe vessel in the oven cavity using a vessel location feature to locatethe vessel in a predetermined position in the oven cavity relative tothe arrays comprises the vessel mating with a support structure builtinto or attached to an inside of the oven cavity such that the supportstructure supports the vessel having a comestible therein in a correctcooking position.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the methodcomprises selecting a plastic vessel or cook-pack which is configured tohave at least one area which functions as a base portion, the plasticbase portion being optically transmissive in at least one of the visibleor infrared narrow wavelength bands of irradiation emitted by theirradiation arrays, placing the comestible in the base portion, andenclosing the comestible in the base portion.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the enclosingcomprises one of positioning a cover on the base portion, applying afilm over the base portion, and placing the base portion in a container.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the methodfurther comprises providing codes for identifying parameters associatedwith the cook-pack or the comestible.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the methodfurther comprises choosing a material for the plastic vessel orcook-pack and forming the plastic vessel or cook-pack.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the selectingcomprises selecting a plastic vessel or cook-pack having colorantstherein.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the methodfurther comprises providing the vessel or cook-pack to a user to heat orcook the comestible in the oven cavity.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the apparatuscomprises a first portion formed of perforated or mesh material, asecond portion formed of the perforated or mesh material, the first andsecond portions being hinged to facilitate placement of the comestiblebetween the first and second portions, and, an apparatus locationfeature to locate the apparatus in a predetermined orientation in theoven cavity relative to the arrays to facilitate irradiation of thecomestible by the arrays.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, thepredetermined orientation in the oven cavity is vertical such that alargest plane of the comestible is approximately vertical.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the apparatuslocation feature facilitates rotation or oscillation of the apparatus inthe oven cavity.

In another aspect of the presently described embodiments, the systemcomprises the oven cavity having irradiation arrays that emit visible orinfrared irradiation at only desired narrow wavelength bands, a vesselfor supporting the comestible, a vessel location feature to locate thevessel in a position in the oven cavity relative to the arrays tofacilitate irradiation of the comestible by the arrays, wherein thevessel is comprised of a material that is optically transmissive at thevisible or infrared narrow wavelength bands of irradiation emitted bythe irradiation arrays.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The presently described embodiments exist in the construction,arrangement, and combination of the various parts of the device, andsteps of the method, whereby the objects contemplated are attained ashereinafter more fully set forth, specifically pointed out in theclaims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGS. 1(a) and (b) show illustrations of example vessels according tothe presently described embodiments.

FIG. 2 is an illustration of an example vessel according to thepresently described embodiments.

FIG. 3 is an illustration of an example vessel according to thepresently described embodiments.

FIG. 4 is an illustration of an example vessel according to thepresently described embodiments.

FIGS. 5(a) and (b) show illustrations of example vessels according tothe presently described embodiments.

FIG. 6 is an illustration of an example method according to thepresently described embodiments.

FIG. 7 is an illustration of an example method according to thepresently described embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The presently described embodiments therefore teach and describe amethodology and product or system configurations which allow food orcomestible items to be directly irradiated for cooking applicationswhich involve the impingement of direct radiant energy on food orcomestible items. Of course, for any given heating or cookingapplication, reference to a comestible or comestible item hereinindicates or means or encompasses a single item or multiple items forease of explanation. Direct radiant cooking applications generallydivide into two broad classifications.

The first, which has been around for many of years, is characterized byvarious forms of broadband irradiation sources. Most traditional cookingtechnologies ranging through wood and coal fires, gas burners, resistiveheating elements, quartz halogen bulbs, and others, do not employ thosemodalities to directly irradiate the comestible food target. Theytypically heat the air in the oven cavity or cooking region and it, inturn, heats and cooks the food item. Sometimes, but not typically, thosemodalities are used as direct radiant heating sources and cook the foodthrough the absorption of the direct photonic energy therefrom. All ofthese irradiation sources are characterized by having a radiation outputwhich is broader than several hundred nanometers in overall bandwidth,full-width at the 10% off full energy point. In fact, usually thesebroadband sources have a bandwidth of thousands of nanometers. They aretherefore referred to as broadband irradiation sources and cookingsystems.

The second broad category is new to the cooking world. In general, it ischaracterized by employing a very narrow bandwidth of output irradiationenergy which wavelength is thoughtfully matched to the cookingapplication in order to have the desired cooking effect on the food. Itis beyond the scope of this invention to describe the full range ofnarrowband direct irradiation cooking technology which is also known asDigital Heat Injection (DHI) technology. It is, however, describedin-depth in at least U.S. Pat. No. 7,425,296 and U.S. application Ser.No. 12/718,899 (filed Mar. 5, 2010—and claiming priority to U.S.Provisional Application No. 61/157,799, filed Mar. 5, 2009—and which isa continuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No. 11/351,030, which isa continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 11/003,679), U.S.application Ser. No. 11/448,630 filed Jun. 7, 2006, and U.S. applicationSer. No. 12/718,919 (filed Mar. 5, 2010—and claiming priority to U.S.Provisional Application No. 61/224,765, filed Jul. 10, 2009 and U.S.Provisional Application No. 61/157,799, filed Mar. 5, 2009), all ofwhich are incorporated herein by reference.

The presently described embodiments teach novel technology andmethodology for cookware and related systems which are designed tofunction properly with direct narrowband irradiation cooking. The novelinnovations describe the techniques, systems and methods for designingand implementing cookware and cook-packs that facilitate allowing thedirect photonic energy to impact the food target(s) or comestibleitem(s) that will be cooked. In at least one form, the narrow wavelengthbands of irradiation match desires absorptive characteristics of thecomestible being heated or cooked. The presently described embodimentsdetail cookware and cook-packs (and/or related systems) which areproperly designed to be either nonblocking or transmissive to the extentdesirable for various types of cooking and food warming. The followingparagraphs describe and detail a wide range of aspects as to the subjectembodiments.

Fundamentally, a cookware or cook-pack product made according to thepresently described embodiments must allow appropriate and adequatetransmission of the photonic energy (e.g. in the visible or infraredranges) to the food target that comes from the irradiation sources thatare incorporated in the narrowband cooking system. Again, in at leastone form, the contemplated narrow wavelength bands of irradiationemitted toward the comestible by the arrays match desired absorptivecharacteristics of the comestible being heated or cooked. There are anumber of ways of allowing the direct irradiation to have theappropriate direct access to the comestible item.

The first way is to use a cookware vessel which has adequate openingsand spaces surrounding the food such that the irradiation can impact thefood directly. It is easy to provide open access to the irradiation fromabove by using an open, uncovered style of cookware such as atraditional skillet. In many cases, an important aspect comes, however,with providing the direct irradiation access from the bottom or sides.By manufacturing the cookware out of a mesh, woven, or perforatedmaterial, it is possible to provide substantial direct access to thefood from the bottom or side irradiation. Ideally, there should be ahigh ratio of opening compared to solid material to maximize the directaccess. While many different materials could be used, a very fine gaugecopper screening material which has a large amount of space between thewires could be an especially advantageous material from which to make acooking grate or a cooking basket. While it is possible to imagine manytypes and kinds of manufacturing methods which create a high percentageof opening to the bottom and sides, this design has some majordrawbacks. Perhaps the biggest drawback is the fact that it will notcontain juice, blood, sauce, or other liquids related to the foodcooking. However, if these are not important to a particularapplication, then it may well be an ideal way of “suspending” thecomestible in an irradiatable position relative to the irradiationsources. Further, narrowband cooking does not require the use ofassociated liquids or sauces in order to maintain a moist and tasty foodproduct. Therefore, to implement this type of narrowband cookware, itwould be desirable to move the irradiation sources so that they are notdirectly in the gravitational drip path of the food item. If theirradiation is accomplished from the side or at an angle so that thedrips cannot land on the irradiation sources, it is a much superiordesign.

With reference to FIG. 1(a), an oven cavity 100 is shown. Within theoven cavity 100, which includes irradiation arrays 120 positioned inexemplary positions as described above and (in operation) emittingnarrow wavelength bands of irradiating suitable for cooking or heatingas described herein (including as described in connection with FIG. 2),is suspended a basket or vessel 102 formed of, for example, very finegauge copper screening material noted above. Of course, any suitablematerial (including plastic or other material that may form part of thecook-pack or packaging of the comestible) may be used. The bracket orvessel may take a variety of forms, including a form having separationsfor separating items within. Also shown are vessel locating features 104that mate with shoulder portions 110 of the oven cavity. The vessellocating features 104 may take a variety of forms, are useful forpositioning the vessel in a selected or suitable position relative tothe arrays to facilitate irradiation of the comestible and may be formedof a variety of materials suitable for use in the oven cavity 100. Inone form, the vessel locating features are lugs or extensions that matewith corresponding portions of the oven cavity to facilitate appropriateorientation and position of the vessel in the oven cavity. Comestibleguide features 106, although not required, are also included in thisexample to provide a guide for users when placing the comestible in thevessel. The guide features 106 likewise are useful for positioning thecomestible relative to the arrays to facilitate irradiation of thecomestible, and may be formed (or placed or otherwise disposed) on, in,or within the mesh material of, the vessel 102.

It is also possible to use this mesh style of cookware to squeeze foodsfrom both sides so that irradiation in another direction such ashorizontal is possible. For example, a steak could be sandwiched betweentwo copper mesh sheets and irradiated horizontally with the large planeof the steak being vertical. With this configuration, all dripping andjuice could fall into a drip trough straight below the food withoutdisturbing or contaminating the direct irradiation sources.

With reference to FIG. 1(b), an oven cavity 200 is shown. Within theoven cavity 200, which includes irradiation arrays 202 positioned inexemplary positions as described above for operation as describedherein, is suspended an alternative vessel such as a mesh device 203formed of, for example, very fine gauge copper screening material notedabove. In this regard, mesh sheets 205 and 206 sandwich the comestible209 (e.g. a steak) for cooking. The sheets 205 and 206 may be connectedat one end with a variety of mechanisms; however, in one form, a hingemechanism 201 is used. The sheets 205 and 206 are connected at an openend to maintain the comestible 209 therebetween by a clip 207, althougha variety of mechanisms or techniques may be used to do so. The clip 207is hinged at hinge 211 and clips or locks to an opposite side of themesh device at 213 by any of a variety of mechanisms including a clip,friction fit, lock, . . . etc. Also shown is attachment or locationfeature 204 from which the device 203 hangs. The attachment 204 may takea variety of forms, including the form of a manual, motorized orautomated device to oscillate or rotate the device 203. A trough 210,for collecting the drippings from the comestible, is also shown. Also,as shown, the largest plane of the comestible is approximately verticalrelative to the bottom of the oven cavity and facing the arrays or therespective sides.

A more technically sophisticated way of practicing the presentlydescribed embodiments employs materials that are engineered to beoptically transmissive or transparent at the narrowband wavelengths thatwill be used for the cooking operation. Again, in at least one form, thecontemplated narrow wavelength bands of irradiation emitted toward thecomestible by the arrays match desired absorptive characteristics of thecomestible being heated or cooked. In order to fully understand andimplement this technology, it is necessary to discuss some fundamentalsof both narrowband cooking and the transmissive characteristics ofvarious materials from which the cookware or cook-packs could beconstructed.

As was discussed above, traditional cooking has been performed withbroadband sources from the beginning of history. The recent innovationof narrowband cooking, which is sometimes known as Digital HeatInjection or DHI, employs an entirely different kind of directirradiation sources. Although there are theoretically many differenttypes of narrowband irradiation sources, an advantageous group of thesesources include solid-state, semiconductor devices that produce thenarrowband energy directly in, for example, the visible and/or infraredranges. Depending on which technology is employed, the full width, athalf-maximum bandwidth of the irradiation will typically be less than afew hundred nanometers in width. Other popular sources may be less than50 nanometers in overall bandwidth, and the current best practice willtypically employ sources which are less than 10 nanometers in width andeven as low as one nanometer in width. These contemporary, narrowbanddirect irradiation cooking sources interact very differently with thevarious types of transmissive materials than broadband sources.

The vessels and cook-packs contemplated by the presently describedembodiments, in at least on form, are optically transmissive ortransparent at the visible or infrared narrow wavelength bands ofirradiation that are emitted by the irradiation arrays. In this regard,as an example, these items have high transparency (e.g. 95% transparencyor greater, or even greater than 98% transparency) in the appropriatewavelength bands. All materials out of which cooking vessels orcook-packs could be manufactured that are transmissive to photonicenergy have a characteristic absorption signature. The signature showshow much absorption that material exhibits at every wavelength that maybe relevant. Such a curve can be produced from the ultraviolet rangethrough the visible range and on through the near infrared range to themid-infrared range and the long infrared range. Many materials havehighly transmissive windows in the near infrared and shortwave infraredregions where they are highly transmissive. They will typically haveother windows where the material is highly absorptive. As irradiationphotons try to pass through a material at a wavelength at which it ishighly transmissive, there is very little heating of the base materialand most of the energy will indeed pass right on through it. On theother hand, as that amount of photonic irradiation energy is directedthrough at a wavelength at which the material is highly absorptive, alarge percentage of that energy will be absorbed and turned into heat inthe material while very little, if any, is actually transmitted throughand out the backside of the material. As the photonic energy enters thematerial at a particular wavelength, that energy is converted to heatand extinguished at an exponential rate depending on the absorptioncoefficient of that material at that wavelength. The amount ofabsorption or transmission can be calculated for any given material andmust be calculated as a function of its thickness. Thicker materialshave a longer path length through which to absorb the photonic energyand for any given wavelength will necessarily produce more conversion ofphotonic energy into heat during its transmission pass. Accordingly, inat least one form, the vessel or cook-pack has a thin cross-section orprofile, e.g. the thinnest cross-section or profile that will allowadequate structural integrity or strength for the geometry of the vesselto function properly. In some cases, for example, the thickness of thematerial could be as thin as 1 mil, but more practically is about 5-10mils to maintain an appropriate blend of strength, integrity andtransmissiveness (e.g. for plastic material). Approximately 3 mmthickness may suffice for other materials such as glass material.

It will also be understood that the vessel or cook-pack may be providedwith only selected portions that are optically transmissive ortransparent at the appropriate wavelengths to allow direct irradiantcooking of a comestible in the vessel or cook-pack. In at least oneform, these selected portions are designed to be very thin in profile orcross-section to enhance transmissive properties.

Thus, as we choose a material out of which to manufacture a cookware orcook-pack for use with narrowband cooking or warming, we should do itwith the material properties in mind. For example, if we are evaluatinga plastic material for use in a cook-pack, the transmission/absorptioncharacteristics at the wavelength or wavelengths that will be used wouldbe important, but the melting temperature and the “softening” or glasstransition temperature would also be important. The container, in atleast one form, maintains enough structural integrity to complete thecooking process. Of course, it should be understood that the cook-packwill generally store the comestible and serve as the container or vesselin which the comestible will be heated or cooked according to thepresent application. In this regard, it will be appreciated thatbidirectional stretching of some materials, such as PET material,generally provides improved structural integrity or strength whileproviding a thinner profile for the material. It will also beappreciated that a thinner profile generally improves opticaltransmissiveness. Also, in at least one form, the vessel or cook-packdoes not give off any deleterious compounds at the temperatures andirradiation intensities that will be utilized.

As a specific example, a strong candidate material in which to package afrozen food to be cooked with DHI would be PET or polyethyleneterephthalate. PET has an advantageous transmission window where thecoefficient of absorption is very low at only about 0.027 in the near IRbetween about 800 nanometers and about 1,000 nanometers. Also, there isvery little absorption at any wavelength up to about 1,600 nanometers,except for a slightly absorptive region around 1,415 nanometers. PET'sglass transition temperature starts at about 185° F. and its meltingtemperature is well above 450° F. It is currently used in industry forhot fill liquids at roughly 200° F.

Other types of plastic material may also be used for the vessels orcook-packs. For example, polypropylene (PP), high density polyethylene(HDPE), low density polyethylene (LDPE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC),polystyrene (PS), post-consumer resin (PCR) or Nylon may form thevessels or cook-packs.

Glass is a material that also has a large transmission window spanningfrom visible through the mid-infrared region. Most of the glass cookwarethat is readily available on the market today is not properly suitablefor narrowband cooking use. The narrowband semiconductor irradiationdevices such as lasers and LEDs can produce highly concentrated energyin small localized areas, which standard sodium lime or other typicalglass cookware cannot tolerate. The well-engineered narrowband cookwaremust have a low thermal coefficient of expansion. Borosilicate glass hassuch a low coefficient of thermal expansion that it will survive wellwith DHI cooking. According to the presently described embodiments, itis recommended that narrowband glass cookware should have a coefficientof thermal expansion of less than 6.0×10⁻⁶. Ideal glass cookware,according to the presently described embodiments, should also have athin cross section so that there will be less heating of the glassitself because of the shorter photonic path, and it may be stressrelieved and tempered as part of its processing. The selected material(e.g. glass or tempered glass), in at least one form, is designed fortoughness in terms of an appropriate strength, structural integrity andtransmissivity.

The question may come up as to whether the example glass or plasticmaterial, such as the PET material, should be visibly clear. Anotherfeature of the present invention is that it does not have to be visiblyclear material in order to be a proper narrowband cookware or cook-packproduct. Many colorants that are used are only absorptive in theirrespective range in the visible wavelengths of light. While the entirevisible wavelength range spans from about 400 nanometers to about 750nanometers, the effect of any given colorant is typically a small subsetof that overall range. Often, however, broadband absorbers are used ascolorants such as titanium dioxide and carbon, which would not besuitable for use with narrowband cooking because they do not have anyhighly transmissive windows in the near infrared and short infraredranges that are relevant. There are many colorants available that arelimited in their absorption to a subset of the visible wavelength rangeor slightly above.

The beauty of this concept is that beautiful and desirable colors can beused for the packaging or cookware with absolutely no deleterious effectto the direct radiant cooking. Colorants could, therefore, be used inglass, plastic, and some ceramics to make for a very desirable consumerproduct. The colorants should simply be selected to have transmissionwindows that will allow the applied wavelengths to pass according to theapplication and heating preferences. That is, the colorants, in at leastone form, are chosen to be optically transmissive or transparent at thechosen wavelengths that irradiate or cook the comestible. Also, thecolorants, in at least one form, cause the vessel or cook-pack to be atleast partially (which could include up to substantially or completely)opaque to a human viewer while maintaining high transmissivity in atleast one of the narrow wavelength bands of irradiation used forcooking. Further, it should be appreciated that inks or colorants may beused on the vessels or cook-packs as labeling material that provideslegibility by a human observer while maintaining high transmissivity inat least one of the narrow wavelength bands of irradiation used forcooking.

There will be applications for narrowband cookware and cook-packs whichwill be optimized with a slightly higher level of absorption in thecooking vessel. For example, an application that can better optimize thecooking if the cooking vessel itself is at a raised temperature. Inorder to accomplish this, an absorptive additive can be put in thematerial which will raise the coefficient of absorption at the desiredwavelength. As was mentioned earlier, carbon black could be added insmall amounts to appropriately increase the absorption of the cookingvessel itself.

Another aspect of the presently described embodiments involves usingantireflective coatings on the cooking vessel or cook-pack for improvedtransmission matching. Such coatings can help to more nearly match theindex of refraction when going from air into the cooking vessel materialat a particular wavelength. Because narrowband cooking typically onlyinvolves one, two, or three very narrow wavelength bands, a coating canbe designed which will match the index of refraction for each of therelevant wavelengths much better than a broadband coating that would tryto match the whole range of broadband wavelengths. Since, with uncoatedtransparent materials, nearly five percent of the irradiation energy isreflected back at each surface as a Fresnal reflection, some increasedperformance can be accomplished by way of these index matching coatings.It should also be appreciated that the coatings (if used) are formulatedto be safe, not release deleterious substances into the food, anddesigned to pass FDA, UL and/or other regulatory agency regulations forfood and food preparation safety.

Cook-packs that are intended for narrowband cooking applications canincorporate or have associated therewith special codes that may take avariety of forms including numerals (or other alphanumeric characters),markings, graphical indicators, . . . etc. that can be used for avariety of reasons including to automatically set up a narrowband ovensystem for optimal cooking. Such codes could be one or two dimensionalcodes, readable or visibly readable codes or could be invisible codesprinted with UV florescent ink or IR florescent ink. These could bestandard bar codes, one or two dimensional bar codes, matrix bar codes,or RFID codes, which communicate copious information to the oven for avariety of purposes. Also, for example, the codes may specify cookingparameters or oven configuration parameters specific to the food in thecook-pack. By using these codes, it would also be possible for the ovensto, for example, automatically read and communicate information thatcould help maintain inventory levels in a store or be tied in with ahome automation system to keep track of pantry stock, dates, and otherpertinent data. Of course, the cookware vessels noted above may also beprovided with such codes specifying cooking parameters or ovenconfiguration parameters corresponding, e.g., to the physical parametersof the vessel. Also, in either cookware or cook-pack implementationsaccording to the presently described embodiments, the codes could beprovided in association with a particular vessel, item of cookware,cook-pack or comestible in a variety of different manners including 1)placement on the vessel, item of cookware, cook-pack or comestible, 2)provision on packaging or the like, or 3) provision on or withassociated documentation such as a receipt.

It should be understood that the code may be provided to the oven in avariety of manners. As mentioned above, for example, the oven could readthe codes in appropriate manners by appropriate sensors or cameras andsent to a controller for the oven (such items not shown in FIGS. 1, 2and 4 for east of illustration). Also, the codes could be input throughan oven interface by the user (also not shown for ease of illustration).

Cook-packs could also include a pressure or steam relief valveintegrated into the container, (e.g. in a base portion or a cover orlid) to prevent packaging from bursting or leaking when it is cookedwith narrowband technology. Also, stripes (or other geometric shapes) ofdifferent materials could be added to the container to cause browning,branding or ‘engraving’ of name logos through, for example, contactheating with the different materials which may absorb higher amounts ofirradiation and heat up. They could also facilitate special affectsneeded for multi-ingredient cooking.

FIG. 2 shows an example of the presently described embodiments. It showsa system according to the presently described embodiments including anoven cooking cavity represented by the space 10 and bounded on two sidesby a pair of oven walls 11. It shows a lower narrowband irradiationarray 20 a and an upper narrowband irradiation array 20 b. Theirradiation arrays are populated with, for example, surface emittinglaser diode devices 21 which irradiate toward the food target item 32with an irradiation pattern shown by the representative photonic vectorlines 22 (e.g. 22 a and 22 b). These laser diode devices 21, in at leastsome forms, irradiate in narrow wavelength bands in the visible and/orinfrared ranges, wherein the narrow wavelength bands match desiredabsorptive characteristics of the comestible for cooking/heating. Thepattern of the irradiation devices 21 are only represented for conceptby the lines 22 (e.g. 22 a and 22 b). A typical system would show anoverlapping irradiation pattern emanating from the devices 21 so thatthere was no gap between the irradiation output of one device versus anadjacent device. A properly designed narrowband oven will arrange thefields of irradiation of the respective devices 21 so that they producea reasonably homogeneous and overlapped irradiation field at the pointof impact with the comestible target 32.

The comestible target 32 is sitting in a specially designed narrowbandcookware vessel 41. The vessel 41 is formed according to the presentlydescribed embodiments (and may include any single feature, anycombination of features, or all of the features described herein) and isshown in an oven cavity to illustrate a system according to thepresently described embodiments. The narrowband cookware vessel 41 canbe designed so that it has special location features such as the lowershoulders of the vessel 43 which can be used in conjunction of thesupport brackets or shoulder 12 to locate the vessel in the properrelationship to the irradiation arrays 20 a and 20 b. It is to beunderstood that the vessel 41 may take on a variety of configurations,including a configuration where compartments for separating items suchas food items are provided. The illustrated vessel 41 is merely anexample. Also, the brackets or shoulder 12 may take on different formsor be replaced with racks or other mechanisms, but, in at least oneform, the different or replacement structures will facilitatepositioning and orientation and be formed of material transmissive atappropriate wavelength bands so the comestible may be heated or cookedin accord with the presently described embodiments.

The narrowband cookware vessel 41 may have graphical or geometricindicators, such as concentric circles or other concentric markings, onits upper surface 44 to provide a guide so that the cook or operator ofthe narrowband oven system will place the comestible item in the properlocation for irradiation cooking. Such markings on the surface 44 caneither be on the surface or manufactured inside the thickness of thecookware 41. Whatever material or colorant that may be used to form suchmarking features should be appropriately transmissive at the wavelengthsthat are to be used in conjunction with the narrowband cooking. Themarkings can be configured in whatever manner will provide the properqueues to place the food targets properly in the cooking vessel. Formost applications it will be appropriate to place the food items centralin the cooking vessel but there may be applications or reasons why it isappropriate to place it other than centrally. One example would be wheremultiple different types of comestibles will be cooked in the samecooking vessel. The markings could be indicative of the correct locationfor each of the several different types of cooking targets. This can beused in conjunction with the narrowband oven to provide differingamounts of irradiation for each of the respective cooking items. Thelocations can correspond to different sections or sub-portions of theirradiation arrays, such as 20 a or 20 b, so that some of theirradiation devices 21 can be turned on and others turned off for aparticular application. The program, could in fact, have programmablecontrol of each different irradiation device 21 or groups or subsetsthereof as may be determined by the narrowband irradiation systemdesigner because of the flexibility required to do particular cookingoperations. The markings 44 could actually take the form of being threedimensional above the surface of the cookware or cook-pack 41 such thatthere are actual physical spaces defined by the markings (such as, forexample, compartments noted above) which make it easier to place thefood in the appropriate locations for the irradiation cooking operation.

If the cooking vessel happens to be a cook-pack or formed of suitablematerial, the dividers 44 could be three dimensionally molded from thethin transmissive material in order to hold the comestibles in placewhile locating it appropriately to be irradiated by the narrowbandcooking system. A bar code or RFID marking associated with a particularkind of pre-packaged food or dinner could contain all of the necessarylocational information with respect to the marking 44 or dividers thatmay be molded into the transmissive package to automatically set up thecontrol system to control the output of the arrays, such as 20 a or 20b, in terms of which devices 21 are turned on at what strength at anygiven time during the cooking process.

The irradiation which would come from the array 20 a from the individualdevices 21 would have an irradiation pattern through the region 23 whichis generally described at vertically upward toward the comestible targetsimilarly to the way the irradiation pattern is formed by array 20 b inthe downward direction but the photonic vector lines have been left offfor clarity in the drawing. Again, in at least one form, thecontemplated narrow wavelength bands of irradiation emitted toward thecomestible by the arrays match desired absorptive characteristics of thecomestible being heated or cooked.

The cooking vessel 41 can be provided with lugs 42 which circumscribepart or all of the cooking vessel but for purposes of providing alocating lug on which the cooking vessel can rest on the brackets 12 tosecure its position vertically in space. This is optional and with thevariety of different configurations that could be imagined may beappropriate in some applications and unneeded in others. The locatinglug 42 can also have one or many appropriately shaped orientation lugs42′ which can be designed to mate with special cut out areas in thecookware fixing bracket 12 as shown in the top view of FIG. 3. FIG. 3also shows a top view of the markings 44 which can be employed to be afood item locating queue.

FIG. 2 also shows that the photonic irradiation vectors 22 sometimesstrike the comestible 32 but sometimes do not. As is shown by vector 24which did not hit the food target item, it is able to pass straightthrough the narrowband cookware 41 and continue along a path. It isbeyond the scope of this invention but a properly designed narrowbandcooking system would employ properly designed reflectors to return orrecycle the photons that do not hit the food target on the first pass sothat it can be still absorbed into the food item.

The upward irradiation from array 20 a and devices 21 is represented bythe photonic vectors 22 a which would be emanating from each of thedevices 21 which is activated. The cookware 41 is on the path to thefood target 32 but is designed to be transmissive at the wavelength thatis being used for the narrowband cooking. As has been describedelsewhere in this document, anti-reflective coatings can be used on oneor both surfaces of cookware 41 to better match the refractive index ofthe cookware 41 to the air space 10 so that the photonic energyrepresented by 22 a has the minimum reflection at the surfaces on itspath through to the comestible 32.

It should be appreciated that the cookware 41 is shown as an integral,relatively homogenous unit; however, the cookware may take a variety ofdifferent forms. For example, the cookware 41 may have a cover or lid(e.g. that, in at least one form, is formed of a suitably opticallytransmissive material in accordance with the presently describedembodiments) or may be formed of a metallic material acting as sidewallswhile having optically transparent material on a bottom thereof. In astill further alternative, a metal rack having shoulders available formating with the oven cavity may be provided with a suitable vesselaccording to the presently described embodiments supported therein.

FIG. 4 shows a similar arrangement to FIG. 2 except that it is showing athin wall plastic cook-pack 46 having a base portion 49 with a plasticcover 45. To illustrate the system according to the presently describedembodiments, an oven cavity is shown. The base portion 49 and the cover45 may take a variety of configurations, including those having ribs orapertures or compartments to separate items such as food items. Also, asshown, the edge of the base portion and/or cover may serve as a locatingfeature to mate with the shoulder 12 of the oven (in this and otherdescribed embodiments including those in FIGS. 5(a), 5(b), 6 and 7).Lugs or extensions may also be provided to the cook-pack or vessel toenhance positioning methods, although it is not required. The shoulderor bracket 12 may also be replaced with a rack or other mechanism tosupport the cook-pack, although optical transmissiveness of such areplacement mechanism may be a factor in achieving the presentlydescribed embodiments. In this case illustrated, energy is beingirradiated from the upper array 20 b as well the lower array 20 a towardthe comestible food item 33 and the photonic energy 22 a and 22 b passesthrough the transmissive structure of the cook-pack 46 including thecover 45 to irradiate or cook the food target 33. Also, if multiplecomestible items or compartments are provided, techniques described inconnection with FIG. 2 for heating or cooking multiple comestibles maybe implemented. The plastic out of which the cook-pack 46 including thecover 45 is manufactured is specifically selected so that it istransmissive, as is described in more detail elsewhere in this document,by the narrowband irradiation that is characteristic of the narrowbandcooking. Also, in one form, as an option, a pressure relief valve oropening may be provided to the lid or base portion, such asrepresentatively shown at 39 or 38. Again, in at least one form, thecontemplated narrow wavelength bands of irradiation emitted toward thecomestible by the arrays match desired absorptive characteristics of thecomestible being heated or cooked. In some forms, the cover 45 may notbe used during the cooking/heating process and may take different forms,including those detailed below.

With reference to FIG. 5(a), an alternative cook-pack 500, storingcomestible 506, is shown. An oven cavity is not shown for ease ofillustration although the example cook-pack could be used in a systemthat heats or cooks as described in accordance with the presentlydescribed embodiments. In FIG. 5(a), the cook-pack 500 has a baseportion 502 and a film cover 504, as opposed to a lid. The base portion502 may take a variety of forms including those with ribs or aperturesor compartments to separate items such as food items and may include, asan option, a pressure relief valve or opening 505. It should beappreciated that the film cover 504 is typically sealed to the baseportion 502 but the film may be removed during cooking or heating insome cases. The plastic out of which the food-pack base portion 502 andfilm cover 504 is made has been specifically selected so that it istransmissive, as is described in more detail elsewhere in this document,by the narrowband irradiation that is characteristic of the narrowbandcooking.

In FIG. 5(b), a further alternative cook-pack 550, storing comestible556, is shown. Again, an oven cavity is not shown for ease ofillustration although the example cook-pack could be used in a systemthat heats or cooks as described in accordance with the presentlydescribed embodiments. The cook-pack 550 includes a base portion 552being substantially flat (e.g. no vertical walls). The base portion 552may take a variety of forms, including that of a disc with apertures orholes (e.g. a mesh or mesh-like disc) or a disc with ribs therein. Afilm cover 554 is provided and, in some cases, may be removed duringcooking or heating. The plastic out of which the food-pack base portion552 and film cover 554 is made is, in at least one form, specificallyselected so that it is transmissive, as is described in more detailelsewhere in this document, by the narrowband irradiation that ischaracteristic of the narrowband cooking.

It should be appreciated that the example cook-packs illustrated herein(e.g. cook-packs in FIGS. 4, 5(a), 5(b), 6 and 7) may take a variety offorms and include a variety of different combinations of the featuresnoted herein (e.g. codes, colorants, . . . etc.). These cook-packs mayalso be used in the variety of manners described herein.

The cookware vessels and cook-packs according to the presently describedembodiments may be manipulated at the preparation stage or cooking stagein unique manners. As such, FIG. 6 is a flow chart for a method forcooking using selected ones of the contemplated devices.

With reference to FIG. 6, a method 600 includes positioning a comestiblein a vessel (or, in some cases, a cook-pack) (at 602). This may includeuse of the comestible guide features of the vessel noted above. Thevessel is positioned in the oven cavity, e.g using the vessel locationfeatures above (at 604). Once the vessel is appropriately positionedrelative to the arrays of the oven cavity, the heating or cookingprocess is conducted (at 606). As noted above, in at least some forms,the heating or cooking process may be accomplished using codes that areinput or read.

FIG. 7 illustrates a flow chart for preparing a cook-pack for later usein an oven cavity. In this regard, a method 700 includes selecting asuitable cook-pack (at 702). Of course, the cook-pack takes the form ofthose described herein. Accordingly, the method may also include theselection of a suitable material and manufacture or forming of acook-pack having the characteristics described herein including beingtransmissive at the visible or infrared narrow wavelength bands ofirradiation that are emitted by the arrays in accord with the presentlydescribed embodiments. As noted above, the cook-pack may also beprovided or associated with special codes to enhance the cooking orheating process. The codes, in one form, are applied to, for example,the cook-pack (or its packaging or associated documentation) to besubsequently read by an oven or input to an oven. Also, as noted above,the cook-pack may have colorants therein. A comestible is placed in thebase portion of a cook-pack (at 704). The comestible is then enclosed inthe base portion (at 706). The enclosure may take a variety of forms,including a lid, a film or a box. It should also be understood that thecook-pack may then be provided to a consumer or user who will heat orcook the comestible using an appropriate oven as described in accordwith the presently described embodiments.

It should be appreciated that the cook-pack selected is, in at least oneform, to be a cook-pack that not only stores the comestible, but also isthe same container or vessel in which the comestible is heated or cookedaccording to the presently described embodiments.

The exemplary embodiment has been described with reference to thepreferred embodiments. Obviously, modifications and alterations willoccur to others upon reading and understanding the preceding detaileddescription. It is intended that the exemplary embodiment be construedas including all such modifications and alterations insofar as they comewithin the scope of the appended claims or the equivalents thereof.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A method of heating a comestible item in anoven cavity, the oven cavity having irradiation arrays that emit visibleor infrared irradiation at only desired narrow wavelength bands, themethod comprising: positioning the comestible in a vessel, the vesselbeing comprised of a material that is optically transmissive in at leastone of the visible or infrared narrow wavelength bands of irradiationemitted by the irradiation arrays; positioning the vessel in the ovencavity using a vessel location feature to locate the vessel in apredetermined position in the oven cavity relative to the arrays suchthat different comestible items are positioned based on markings orcompartments in the vessel to correspond to different portions of theirradiation arrays; and, heating the comestible in the vessel withirradiation emitted by the irradiation arrays.
 2. The method as setforth in claim 1 wherein positioning the comestible in the vesselcomprises using the markings which comprise a comestible guide featureto orient the comestible.
 3. The method as set forth in claim 2 whereinthe comestible guide feature comprises graphical indicators or geometricfeatures on a bottom of the vessel.
 4. The method as set forth in claim1 wherein the vessel location feature comprises a shoulder positioned onthe outside of the vessel, the shoulder being configured to mate with aportion of the oven cavity to hold and locate the vessel within the ovencavity.
 5. The method as set forth in claim 1 wherein positioning thevessel in the oven cavity using a vessel location feature to locate thevessel in a predetermined position in the oven cavity relative to thearrays comprises the vessel mating with a support structure built intoor attached to an inside of the oven cavity such that the supportstructure supports the vessel having a comestible therein in a correctcooking position.
 6. The method as set forth in claim 1 wherein thenarrow wavelength bands of irradiation are at least one of less than 50nanometers, less than 10 nanometers or approximately 1 nanometer inwidth.
 7. The method as set forth in claim 1 wherein the heating isbased on programmable control of the irradiation arrays.
 8. The methodas set forth in claim 1 wherein the heating comprises heating thedifferent comestible items selectively using differing irradiation forthe different comestible items.
 9. A method of heating a comestible itemin a vessel or cook-pack in an oven cavity, the oven cavity havingirradiation arrays that emit visible or infrared irradiation at onlydesired narrow wavelength bands and the vessel or cook-pack beingcomprised of a material that is optically transmissive in at least oneof the visible or infrared narrow wavelength bands of irradiationemitted by the irradiation arrays, the method comprising: positioningthe vessel or cook-pack in the oven cavity using a location feature tolocate the vessel or cook-pack in a predetermined position in the ovencavity relative to the arrays such that different comestible items arepositioned based on markings or compartments in the vessel or cook-packto correspond to different portions of the irradiation arrays; and,heating the comestible in the vessel or cook-pack with irradiationemitted by the irradiation arrays.
 10. The method as set forth in claim9 wherein the comestible is positioned in the vessel or cook-pack basedon the markings which comprise a comestible guide feature to orient thecomestible.
 11. The method as set forth in claim 10 wherein thecomestible guide feature comprises graphical indicators or geometricfeatures on a bottom of the vessel or cook-pack.
 12. The method as setforth in claim 9 wherein the location feature comprises a shoulderpositioned on the outside of the vessel or cook-pack, the shoulder beingconfigured to mate with a portion of the oven cavity to hold and locatethe vessel or cook-pack within the oven cavity.
 13. The method as setforth in claim 9 wherein positioning the vessel or cook-pack in the ovencavity using a location feature to locate the vessel or cook-pack in apredetermined position in the oven cavity relative to the arrayscomprises the vessel or cook-pack mating with a support structure builtinto or attached to an inside of the oven cavity such that the supportstructure supports the vessel or cook-pack having a comestible thereinin a correct cooking position.
 14. The method as set forth in claim 9wherein the heating comprises heating the different comestible itemsselectively using differing irradiation for the different comestibleitems.
 15. The method as set forth in claim 9 wherein the narrowwavelength bands of irradiation are at least one of less than 50nanometers, less than 10 nanometers or approximately 1 nanometer inwidth.
 16. The method as set forth in claim 9 wherein the heating isbased on programmable control of the irradiation arrays.
 17. A method ofheating a comestible item in a vessel or cook-pack in an oven cavity,the oven cavity having irradiation arrays that emit visible or infraredirradiation at only desired narrow wavelength bands and the vessel orcook-pack being comprised of a material that is optically transmissivein at least one of the visible or infrared narrow wavelength bands ofirradiation emitted by the irradiation arrays, the method comprising:positioning the vessel or cook-pack in the oven cavity using a locationfeature to locate the vessel or cook-pack in a predetermined position inthe oven cavity relative to the arrays such that different comestibleitems are positioned to correspond to different portions of theirradiation arrays; and, heating the comestible in the vessel orcook-pack with irradiation emitted by the irradiation arrays, theheating comprising heating the different comestible items selectivelyusing differing irradiation for the different comestible items based onprogrammable control of the irradiation arrays.
 18. The method as setforth in claim 17 wherein the comestible is positioned in the vessel orcook-pack based on the markings which comprise a comestible guidefeature to orient the comestible.
 19. The method as set forth in claim18 wherein the comestible guide feature comprises graphical indicatorsor geometric features on a bottom of the vessel or cook-pack.
 20. Themethod as set forth in claim 17 wherein the location feature comprises ashoulder positioned on the outside of the vessel or cook-pack, theshoulder being configured to mate with a portion of the oven cavity tohold and locate the vessel or cook-pack within the oven cavity.
 21. Themethod as set forth in claim 17 wherein positioning the vessel orcook-pack in the oven cavity using a location feature to locate thevessel or cook-pack in a predetermined position in the oven cavityrelative to the arrays comprises the vessel or cook-pack mating with asupport structure built into or attached to an inside of the oven cavitysuch that the support structure supports the vessel or cook-pack havinga comestible therein in a correct cooking position.
 22. The method asset forth in claim 17 wherein the narrow wavelength bands of irradiationare at least one of less than 50 nanometers, less than 10 nanometers orapproximately 1 nanometer in width.